Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I agree with the Senator; I see it myself. I work with families every day and a few months ago, I met some of the parents from the Carlow branch of Down Syndrome Ireland and told them about this meeting. Some of the parents told me that nothing was being done and they were getting tormented and disillusioned. Young children there need speech and language therapy. They need the therapies they need. I think parents are now really feeling it for their children and for children who need the services that are there. I can only speak highly of the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte. I constantly work with her on issues within my own area of Carlow-Kilkenny. I have a recent case involving the nicest family you ever came across. They have a son who is in his late 30s or early 40s. The parents kept the son at home all of their lives. They were delighted to have him. He used to go into a great centre for a few hours every day. We have lots of good centres in Carlow, so we are very lucky. They got to the stage where they are not able to manage him any more. I suppose it is because they have got older. I had the Minister of State's heart broken for months to try to sort a solution, and to get him into one of these small residential homes.

We did that, but he is still not in it. We have funding from the HSE, the Minister committed to it, but the reason he is not in that home is that it has no staff. Now, I have been-----